title: Beading of the astrocytic processes (clasmatodendrosis) following head trauma is associated with protein degradation pathways.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To present the incidence of clasmatodendrosis (injured astrocytic processes) and analyse the association between clasmatodendrosis and the ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS) and autophagy lysosome system (autophagy).
  
  
  METHODS
  The injured cerebral cortices of 36 autopsy cases were analysed by light microscopy by immunohistochemistry using an anti-glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) antibody and UPS marker antibodies (ubiquitin and lysine 48-linked polyubiquitin chains (K(48)) and autophagy marker (lysine 63-linked polyubiquitin chains (K(63)), p62/sequestosome 1 and microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 [LC3]). Double-immunofluorescence staining was used to detect the relationships between p62-K(48), p62-K(63) and GFAP-K(48).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Clasmatodendrosis that was immunoreactive to GFAP or K(48) was detected by 1 hour up to 14 days following head trauma. The survival time of cases with clasmatodendrosis was significantly shorter than that in cases without clasmatodendrosis (p < 0.01). Involvement of contusion or oedema was significantly frequent in cases with clasmatodendrosis (p < 0.01). There was no significant age difference between cases with clasmatodendrosis and cases without clasmatodendrosis (p = 0.18). Double-immunofluorescence staining for p62-K(48) and GFAP-K(48) demonstrated clasmatodendrosis with overlapping fluorescence signals.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Clasmatodendrosis is associated with UPS-mediated, autophagy and relatively acute pathological findings after traumatic intracranial injury.
authors.affiliation: Department of Forensic Medicine , and.
authors.forename: Kentaro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sakai
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fukuda
authors.forename: Kimiharu
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Iwadate
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D001343:Autophagy; D002102:Cadaver; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D059748:Proteolysis
chemical_list: D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein; D007202:Indicators and Reagents